RWBY: Choices of Light and Dark
by Marsa The Redeemed
Summary: Prequel Story - Before they were students they were children. Before they had taken their paths they were all given choices. See what made them all take the paths of life that would later define them as people. Origin story for OC Characters used in Light and Dark RWBY-verse. Rated T for mild swearing, violence, and death.
1. Chapter 1: Roanos I

RWBY: Choices of Light and Dark

Chapter I: Roanos - Before I Broke

A/N: So I've been procrastinating putting up the prequel story but now it's here. Don't really have an order of who will get focused on but I'll try to have the entire thing finished before the second arc starts, enjoy.

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 _Mountain Village_

The crisp mountain air was clean and fresh as a pair of young boys ran through a grassy plain and up a small hill. The boys were identical save for the slight difference in the shading of their hair colors and their eyes. One of the boys had dirty blonde colored hair while his twin's was darker and more brown than blonde.

"Come on Shadow!" the boy with dirty blonde hair called out.

"Roanos, you're running to fast!" Shadow yelled at his brother as he tried to catch up to him.

Roanos laughed and looked behind him where his brother was almost a yard and a half away from him. Reaching the top of the Hill Roanos looked down at the valley below and smiled. Shadow reached the same spot a few seconds later and stood next to his brother while breathing heavily.

"Look at it all." Roanos said as he stretched his arms out.

"There's a whole world out there beyond the valley." The young boy continued as he fell onto his back and looked up at the sky.

"Roanos, why do you want to explore the world so badly?" Shadow asked his brother before sitting down next to him.

"Valethornia has been cut off from the other countries of Remnants for untold generations. I want to see those places that are only mentioned in books; Vale, Haven, and Atlas. I want to learn about their culture and lifestyles. Wouldn't it be exciting to be the one to reconnect Valethornia with the rest of the world?" Roanos asked.

"Maybe, but you're just one person Roanos. How would you even go about connecting the countries? No one has Valethornia in centuries what makes you think you even could?" Shadow asked flooding Roanos with questions.

Roanos looked to his twin with a mischievous smirk.

"I'll join the most elite huntsman and huntresses group in the military. Once I get super famous and strong I'll make a naval unit and sail away." The child explained gesturing with his hands.

Shadow tilted his head slightly as he stared at Roanos. He could never understand where his younger brother got these ideas from but it was always a great source of amusement to hear these dreams. Although no one could ever tell from the way they acted that Roanos was the younger of the two, the twins themselves didn't care much.

"Roanos! Shadow!" the brothers heard a female voice call out to them.

Looking down the hill they saw a young girl running up to them. She was wearing a long dark orange-yellow sundress that complimented her long and curly orange-red hair. Her dark-red eyes shone with happiness as she ran to meet the brothers.

Roanos looked over at Shadow and saw his older brother was blushing deeply. Shadow had a crush on the girl that was obvious to everyone but her. Reaching the brothers the girl bent over and held her body at her knees as she caught her breath.

"I'm glad I caught you guys." She told the twins once she was finally able to breathe.

"You and your family are moving away from the village in a few hours aren't you?" Roanos asked as he sat up.

The girl nodded and sat down in between the brothers.

"Yea we are. My parents are just finishing up some things around the village but I wanted to find you both. I wanted to be able to say goodbye to you properly" She answered as the wind began blowing softly against them.

The three children sat in silence watching the clouds.

"Will you come back and visit us?" Shadow asked, breaking the silence, with a slight quiver in his voice.

"I don't know. My grandparents are staying in the village so it might be ok with my parents if I came back to stay with them." Their friend answered.

"I hope you do, the village will get a lot less quiet without you here." Shadow commented.

The girl laughed and shoved Shadow lightly.

"Don't say that. You guys have to keep up the noise and mischief. We're the Tres Banditos Tontas. Just because I'm gone doesn't mean our gang is over. I'll cause enough trouble for the three of us in eastern trade cities of Mariados so guys will have to do my share of troublemaking together while I'm away." She told the twins.

Roanos smiled and nodded at the girl while Shadow nodded in agreement with a slight frown.

The three friends sat on the hill as the birds flew overhead and the sounds of crickets began to fill the air. None of them knew what to do or say. They just wanted to stay together for as long as they could before being separated. Roanos stood up and looked at the other two before smiling broadly.

"You know, we never finished our competition. Right now the score is tied across the board with all of us at three wins." He said causing his brother and the girl to look at him with slightly confused stares.

"Remember the competition to see who would be leader of the gang. We did tree climbing, berry gather, and the bug hunt along with a bunch of other things." Roanos explained.

The realization dawned on the other two as they too began to smile. The girl stood up first with a challenging look in her eyes. Shadow had a wide smile plastered to his face as he looked Roanos in the eye.

"The final tie-breaker competition will be a race from here back to the village." Roanos announced.

"A race, we'll then you should declare me the winner already. I'm faster than the both of you." Shadow proclaimed as he puffed out his chest.

"Yea in a sprinting race but this is a distance run and we have obstacles to avoid. Pure speed doesn't beat endurance." The girl countered.

"So we can take any route we want and the first one to the village is the winner." Roanos told them as he got into his running stance.

The other two children nodded and also got ready.

"On your mark."

"Get set."

"Go!"

The three children all launched themselves as hard as they could as they began to run. Shadow quickly took the lead as he managed to keep his speed and balance down the hill. Roanos was right behind him with their friend bringing up the rear. The trio ran across the plains as they leveled out and began to laugh as they ran with the girl passing Roanos and taking second when they came to the forests that separated their village from the plains. Roanos jumped a fallen log and saw his twin off to the side sliding over a rock. The obstacles of the forest had indeed hampered Shadow's speed advantage as the girl pulled ahead.

Her dress got caught on a bush but she didn't slow down and continued to run, tearing the garment. Jumping a small puddle the girl landed and slid on a patch of muddy ground while Roanos and Shadow ran past her with joyous laughter. She didn't let the fall deter her and was on her feet in seconds chasing after the siblings.

Soon they came to the stream that bisected the forest. Although it was a stream it was still rather deep dropping about three feet near the middle. Roanos reached the log bridge that connected the two sides before Shadow and carefully began to make his way across with his brother behind him.

When their friend caught up they saw that she neglected the bridge in favor of the more dangerous boulder path. Very few children ever skipped along the topside of the boulders for fear of falling into the river but she brazenly leapt from one rock to another and made it to the other side before Roanos had finished crossing the log.

Running ahead of the brother the girl weaved between trees. She could hear their laughter behind her as they swore to bypass her and win the race. She didn't let them distract her however and broke through the trees towards the clearing where their village sat. Stopping briefly to catch her breath the girl swore loudly when Roanos and Shadow both leapt from the trees to her left and began sprinting towards the village.

She had lost her lead but continued to run with all her might. Roanos and Shadow ran almost neck and neck but seemed to be getting closer to her as she ran. She noticed then how heavily the twins were breathing. Her short reprieve had given her body a chance to replenish a lot of the lost oxygen it had spent during her sprint and rock hopping.

The brothers on the other hand were gasping as they tried to breathe in enough air to just keep their pace. The girl smiled as she pulled up next to her friends. Roanos and Shadow still had smiles on their faces as the trio ran. The village was only a few meters away as the girl pulled ahead. Now instead of laughing she heard the twins cheering for her. They were encouraging her to keep going and not to look back. They told her that she'd always have friends with them and at that moment she realized the cheering wasn't for the race but for her going ahead in life away from the village.

Tears sprung to her eyes as she ran and when she crossed the entrance of the village she didn't stop running. Saying goodbye would be too painful. She didn't want to leave her friends behind but she knew she would have to. Taking a glance back as she ran the girl saw that Roanos and Shadow had both entered the village and were waving at her with tears running down their faces as well.

They knew that this was goodbye and they were broken up about it just as much as she was. She waved to them as she ran smiling and crying as both sadness and joy swam around within her. _I'll definitely come back and visit you both again someday. This isn't the end of our friendship._ She thought as she began to sprint to her house.

Roanos and Shadow watched their friend run. They were sad to see her go but knew that they would see her again whenever she came to visit. Looking to one another the twins smiled before turning towards their home and running. They were tired, sweaty, and dirty. As they approached the medium sized house a small grey furred dog ran up to meet them.

"Fenrir!" Shadow called out, catching the small dog as it leapt at him. Fenrir licked Shadow's face as he was lifted up. Roanos pet the dog and received licked fingers as a result. The boys entered their house and called out their return to their mother. The woman in question poked her head out from the kitchen and told her sons to wash up as she was cooking dinner.

The boy's mother had a plump figure and happy demeanor. Her shoulder-length hair was dark brown and she had dark hazel eyes. These two traits had been mostly inherited by Roanos while his twin had received a mixture of their father's blonde hair and mother's dark brown as well as their father's dark green eyes.

The siblings ran upstairs and into their room as they got their pajamas out and quickly undressed to bathe. Bringing Fenrir with them into the bathroom the children began to fill the tube with water, liquid soap, and body wash. Once it was sufficiently filled they got inside and began to clean themselves and their dog while also playing with the bubbles formed from the soapy water.

It wasn't until their mother called them out for dinner that the twins realized they had been in the tub for well over twenty minutes they drained the water and quickly dried themselves off before putting on their pajamas and running back downstairs to the kitchen.

Their father hadn't come back yet as his spot at the table was empty. Onyx Stormcloud worked in the mines which was the village's most prominent source of wealth. The village had been founded by a group of eleven families, five generations ago. They had started mining the mountain for resources and found that it was rich with a variety of metal veins. Selling the metal to various cities the families were able to get the village properly built and even registered under the protection of the kingdom.

The boy's usually only saw their father for a few hours each day, in the morning and when he returned at night. As they ate in silence the boys told their mother about their day and what they had done. She asked if they had seen their friend off and they told her they had.

She knew it was hard on her boys but their mother was a caring and understanding woman so she did her best to comfort them. When they had finished eating the boys went to the living room and began to watch television.

Neither of the boys knew exactly when they had fallen asleep but the sound of their mother crying out for them to wake up made them jump to their feet. Roanos looked around and saw his mother standing only a foot away. She was yelling at him and Shadow to run. He heard the sound of the villages alarms and a sense of dread washed over him.

Grimm had come and were now attacking the village. Grabbing his brother by the arm Roanos took Shadow and began to run with their mother. The woman took them out the back of the house and started running towards the shed where they had an underground shelter. They had barely taken three steps out the house when a pack of beowolves leapt from the top of their house and tackled their mother to the ground.

"Don't look! Run to the shed!" the woman cried out as the monsters began to tear at her body.

Roanos and Shadow were frozen as they saw one of the beowolves take their mother by the throat before ripping a large chunk of esophagus from the woman, killing her. As the blood splattered over the children, they were brought back to reality. Ducking a swipe from one of the creatures Shadow pulled Roanos with him and together the twins ran towards the only safety they knew. They didn't make it far as the beowolf pack quickly caught up to them and grabbed Shadow by the leg.

"Let go of my brother!" Roanos cried as he hit the beowolf with his fist. The creature let go but not because of Roanos. Fenrir had run out of the house after the boys and was currently biting the Beowulf's ankle in his small jaws. Growling deeply the beast lifted its free foot before stomping down on Fenrir and crushing the dog beneath its heel.

"FEEENNNNNRRRIIIIIRR!" Shadow and Roanos cried out in unison as their dog was killed.

They were so preoccupied with their dog's death that they failed to notice the beowolf raising its claws to strike them. Roanos felt his body pushed to the side and watched in horror as his twin was impaled through the chest.

"Shadow?" Roanos called out to his brother, who was still breathing.

"Shadow?" Roanos called out again as his brother vomited a torrent of blood.

The beowolf raised its claws to its face and opened its jaws to finished the child off. At that moment something inside Roanos snapped. He didn't know why he did what he did but crying out the child thrust his hand forwards to try and stop his brother from being eaten.

"SHADOW!" Roanos cried out in pain as tears flowed from his eyes. Suddenly the beowolf was bisected by a shadow, to be more precise by Roanos's shadow. The monster dropped Roanos's brother to the ground as it died and its companions all closed in on the child as he cried, eyes close and repeatedly screaming his brother's name.

Roanos's shadow grew until it became humanoid. It opened some semblance of a mouth and released a blood-curdling roar before attacking the Grimm. The Beowolves saw this threat and met it head-on. The shadow Roanos wasn't affected by their attacks as it grabbed limbs and ripped the beowolves apart. Extra arms grew from the projected creature as Roanos continued to cry out for his brother to come back.

His cries of pain only brought more Grimm to his location, attracted by the intense negativity he felt at the loss of his mother, brother, and pet. The more he felt though the more powerful his shadow projection grew. It tore through creeps, ursa, and beowolves like tissue paper. Roanos felt nothing but the despair of his own existence.

His shadow protected him as Grimm continued to attack. They were hell-bent on taking out the source of negativity but paid the price with their lives. It wasn't until more than a dozen score of Grimm had been decimated that the creatures finally backed off, weary of the shadow that protected Roanos.

Roanos cradled his brother's corpse in his arms only repeating the name of the person he had lost. The sun rose hours later and still Roanos didn't move. The child sat in the same spot for a full day alone save for the corpses of his family. On the following day after exhaustion had finally forced Roanos to sleep did he finally register everything that had happened.

Roanos stood up and looked at the remains of his house and family. Walking away he began to explore the village but saw only similar scenes of chaos everywhere he went. Rushing over to his friend's house Roanos finally saw something worth being hopeful for. The home was relatively intact showing little signs of having been attacked by Grimm which meant that no one had been around during the attack. She and her family had gotten out of the village in time.

Hearing a crunch from behind Roanos froze with fear. There was another crunch and slowly the child turned. Approaching him was a person dressed in white with a cowl covering their face. This person was not someone from the village but an adult he had never seen before. His mother had taught him never to talk to strangers but Roanos was alone now. The only security he knew came from adults. Breaking into a cry the boy ran up to the person before wrapping his arms around their legs.

"Hush child, you are safe now." Roanos heard a quiet male voice comfortingly speak to him.

"They're dead, they're all dead." Roanos stated between his tears.

"Yes, but not you. You survived and now I will take you to a place we're you can be safe." The man said extending his hand to the child.

"What is your name?" Roanos asked as he and the man walked from the wreckage of the village.

The man looked at Roanos from beneath his cowl before lowering it and showing his face to the child. He was handsome with dark hair and a pale complexion.

"My friends call me Magress but from this moment forward you will refer to me as Master. I am going to train you child and you will be given all that I know." Magress answered.

Roanos stared with wide-eyed wonder at Magress.

"Yes Master, I listen and obey." The child answered with a hopeful look in his eyes and a small smile on his face.

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A/N: So there it is; the foundation for what Roanos would eventually become. You know the deal, review and let me know what you thought; kudos to anyone who can recognize the cameo character.


	2. Chapter 2: Roanos II

RWBY: Choices of Light and Dark

Chapter II: Roanos – Broken

A/N: Expect frequent updates over the next week or so.

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 _Training Facility Sierra Nine-Two-Nine_

"Again Roanos!" Magress commanded as he readied his lance.

Roanos stood to his feet breathing heavily the preteen had spent the past seven years under Magress's tutelage. In that time, he had grown exponentially. He stood almost five feet tall with an athletic build. His muscles were evenly toned across his body from top to bottom.

Roanos knew why he was training so hard. Magress had explained it to him every day ever since taking the child under his care. The kingdom had allowed his village to be destroyed so that they could claim the mountain and its mines for the crown. The monarchy was to blame for the death of his family and Magress was training him to become part of an elite group that would help bring the government down.

Lifting the massive sword that he had chosen for his weapon of choice Roanos cried out and charged the older fighter. His swing was wide and easily avoidable. Magress caught this and instantly went for the opening presented.

Smiling at the predictability of his master Roanos quickly ducked the lance. Bobbing and weaving his way closer in a matter of seconds Roanos shoulder checked Magress and knocked him off balance before striking three times in quick succession. Magress stumbled back from the hits as Roanos spun his sword over his head like a helicopter blade three times before readying it behind his back.

"That was a feint, where did you learn how to do that?" Magress asked as he prepared himself for another engagement.

"Come now Master, I can't reveal all my secrets to you." Roanos said with a cheeky smile on his face.

Magress narrowed his eyes at the boy and charged in striking out with his lance multiple times. Having already readied himself beforehand Roanos was easily able to block the first few attacks with the flat of his blade. Magress wouldn't let up as the speed of his attacks increased. Soon Roanos was having to opt for deflections instead of straight blocks. As the two combatants danced around the room with their weapons Roanos couldn't help by question why Magress had suddenly gotten so serious.

Their training sessions had always been intense but now his Master was striking at points that could kill him if he wasn't quick enough to defend himself. Spinning away from a particularly nasty thrust that would've impaled him through the face Roanos was stopped by a kick to the side and crumpled to the floor. Magress looked down at the child gasping for air and shook his head.

"You have to become more ruthless Roanos. Show no mercy to your targets or they will use your hesitation against you." Magress began to lecture the boy.

"Master, we are only training. Why would I use lethal force against you?" Roanos finally managed to gasp out after catching his breath.

Magress glared at Roanos and kicked the child in the chest before pinning him beneath his boot.

"Roanos, you need to be strong. As much as you may care for me for saving you and raising you, you must remember that only the strongest survive." Magress stated as Roanos struggled beneath his foot.

"Master, you're too strong!" Roanos cried out.

"Then become stronger! Find the strength inside you and make me move." Magress commanded as he applied more pressure to Roanos's chest.

The child cried out in pain as he continued in vain to lift the man's foot off his body. Just as it seemed his ribcage would break Roanos shot his hands forwards and with it his shadow also jumped and grabbed Magress by the neck before lifting the man into the air.

From behind the hidden observation window a group of eyes saw what Roanos was doing. The owners of those eyes all smiled to themselves and nodded while whispering amongst one another. One person in particular, a woman with ice-blue hair and an extremely pale complexion smiled widely while slowly running her nails along her arm.

Back in the room Roanos stared at Magress as his shadow continued to hold the man. Roanos felt anger surging through his body as he willed the construct to crushed Magress's neck. Before it could however Magress broke free of its grasp. A blinding light had been flashed throughout the room, temporarily removing all shadows.

"That semblance of yours is powerful but the glaring flaw in its execution is that you need a moderate light source for your shadow to operate in. If there is too much or too little light, then it's useless." Magress told Roanos as the preteen collapsed on the floor.

"Get up there is someone I want to introduce you too." Magress told Roanos as he took the boy's sword and brought it over to the weapons rack that extended from the wall.

Roanos did his best to steady himself on his feet as he walked over to Magress and began to follow the man through the halls of the base. Roanos knew that he and Magress weren't the only ones here. He had seen people of varying ages from children to teenagers to adults.

Magress had told him that they were all like a family of sorts. Roanos rarely interacted with others outside of Magress but had made friends with two boys, Dax Risso and Kyle Hefley. Walking through the halls Roanos was brought to the one place he had been forbidden to enter, the laboratory.

He entered the room after Magress and was surprised to see it empty save for plants and a green-haired man.

"Lance, I brought him here." Magress spoke, calling out to the green-haired man.

Roanos stepped back a bit as Lance turned around to face them. The man looked identical to Magress save the hair color. Both men had the elven shaped faced with pointed chin and narrow jaw. Their eyes were piercing dark irises that seem to look into one's soul.

"You have a twin?" Roanos asked looking from Lance to Magress.

"I do. Its one of the reasons I'm one of the few people in the world who might even comprehend the pain you felt losing your brother." Magress answered kneeling to look Roanos in the eye.

"Save the sentimentality for later Magress, we have work to do." Lance spoke, his voice cold and curt.

Roanos looked to the man with a confused expression before looking back to Magress.

"What's going on Master?" the child asked as Magress rose.

"We have developed a new weapon. It was designed for someone with abilities similar to yours." Magress began to explain.

"What happened to them?" Roanos interrupted looking for some hint from the two adults.

"They died, before we could give them the weapon." Magress answered.

Roanos swallowed loudly as his brain began to put pieces together.

"We want you to have the weapon." Magress continued.

"If you wanted me to have it why do we have to talk about it?" Roanos asked confused.

"In order to accommodate your unique abilities we have to preform surgery on you and there is a chance you might not survive." Lance spoke stopping Magress from explaining.

"Considering how much time and effort my brother has spent training you he viciously argued on your behalf that you be given the choice of whether or not you wanted to go ahead." he continued, looking at Roanos with a bored expression.

"Roanos, if this succeeds your abilities and power would skyrocket. You would easily be tens of dozens times stronger than you are now and well able to take your revenge against the monarchy that betrayed your village." Magress spoke.

"There is also the chance that you might die and with that all your chances for vengeance would be gone." the boys guardian told him.

Roanos had never before been given the choice on how he wanted to train. he had never been given the choice on how to become a better fighter. Magress had made these decisions for him but now everything was in his hands. The child looked to Magress, the one constant truth in his life that had protected him.

He knew Magress had his best interests at heart even if his training methods were intense but now was not the time to show weakness if he could gain immense power. Closing his eyes Roanos steeled himself before answering.

"I'll take the surgery and the weapon but I wont be dying anytime soon." he told Lance causing the man to smirk.

"Perfect, we'll begin in a few hours. I'd suggest you say your good byes but you seem confident of your survival." Lance replied as he turned around and began to work on something that Roanos couldn't see.

"Magress, bring him to the fourth operations room when it's time. It seems we'll be calling on the aid of Serin and Melchior." Lance told his brother.

Magress was silent as he motioned for Roanos to follow him out of the room. The master and student duo walked through the halls in silence. Roanos couldn't tell what was going through Magress's mind as they journeyed back to their quarters.

"Master, did my choice upset you?" Roanos asked after the silence became too much for him.

"Roanos, I am neither pleased nor upset. The choice was yours to make and you alone must live or die with the consequences. You are growing up and I won't always be there to show you the way. Your choices will shape you and define you as a person. You must make the best of any situation given to you and remember that only by being stronger than your opposition can you hope to survive." Magress answered as the duo walked into their room.

The "room" was more like a small apartment. It had a kitchen, living space, one bathroom, and two bedrooms. Magress immediately went to his room and closed the door behind him leaving the young Roanos to mull over his words.

Roanos sighed heavily as he tried to figure out exactly what it was Magress was trying to teach him. One one side Magress was a ruthless and violent fighter, teaching Roanos how to fight to kill. On the other side the man also cared for Roanos's well-being which conflicted with his teachings of never allowing anyone to get close lest they be used against you as a means for power.

As the thoughts swirled within his mind Roanos went into his room and began working out. He started out with some light stretching as he was still limber from the sparing session with Magress before dropping down and beginning a set of push-ups. As his body worked Roanos's mind gained some clarity. Magress had shown him kindness but it might have been Roanos being presumptuous in thinking the man cared about him as a person.

Lance had said the only reason Magress had argued against forcing the surgery was because he had spent the past few years training and molding Roanos into a living weapon. _Magress needs me to be as destructive as I can. It's the reason he pushes me so hard. I am his sword and shield. I fight for him and if need be I'll die for him._ the child thought as he switched from double handed pushups to one-handed ones starting with his left.

Roanos tried to remember some kindness that Magress had shown him that may disprove the belief he was beginning to form. Nothing immediately came to mind as the past few years had been filled with training and education. Magress had taught Roanos everything he believed the boy needed, from advanced fighting tactics to how to dress a field wound. The man had told Roanos everything he learned was for his survival once he was ready.

The child continued his workout moving from pushups to curls to situps. He never noticed time passing as he moved to weight training and only stopped once Magress knocked on the door telling him it was time to go. The duo left their quarters and once again walked in silence through the building complex. Roanos was led past various education centers and training rooms towards the medical wing.

Inside the area Roanos was greeted by a faunus woman, with fin-like protrusions coming out the top of her head. The protrusions were somewhat hidden by the woman's bright icy-blue hair and she smiled at Roanos in a way that made him feel more relaxed than he actually felt.

"Roanos, this is Serin, one of our best surgeons." Magress introduced his ward to the woman.

"Hello Ms. Serin, it is a pleasure to meet you." Roanos greeted extending his hand to the faunus female.

"Trust me Roanos, the pleasure is all mine." Serin replied with a sultry tone in her voice.

"Easy Serin, you'll get your payment after the work is done, not before and definitely not from him." Magress warned with a slight edge in his voice.

Serin smiled and nodded with a slight incline of her head.

"Follow me Roanos, we have to prepare your body for the procedure." Serin told the child as she took his hand in hers.

Roanos looked back to Magress as he was lead off. First Serin took him into a small room with a singular chair in the middle. Roanos was introduced to a man named Melchior who proceeded to shave his head and arms. Melchior did his best to remove as much hair from Roanos's body as possible using a laser to get hard to reach areas. Once he was done Roanos was lead into a shower chamber and doused with various cleaning solutions before being air dried with a high powered blower.

Serin and Melchior finally brought Roanos to the operating room. The child saw Lance was already inside with the instruments needed lined up on a table close at hand. There were two other tables that Roanos could only guess were for Serin and Melchior. Climbing onto the operating table Roanos looked around the room with a slight sense of fear rising inside him.

Minutes later Serin and Melchior returned, dressed as Lance was in their operating attire. The three adults spoke among themselves for a few minutes before walking to the table and Roanos. Lance pulled down a mask that hung off the side and placed it over Roanos's nose and mouth.

"Your will to live, show us how strong it is." Lance's muffled voice spoke to Roanos as the child's world turned to darkness.

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A/N: Figure Roanos has one more bit before I move on to the next char. Hope you enjoyed it.


	3. Chapter 3: Roanos III

RWBY: Choices of Light and Dark

Chapter III: Roanos – As Broken as Me

 _Lucidiores Umbras Outpost_

 **Name: Roanos Stormcloud**

 **Age: 14**

 **Height: 6' 9"**

 **Weight: 237 lbs.**

 **Semblance: Shadow Aura Manipulation – Roanos has the ability to manipulate shadows, with the strongest shadow being his own projection. Testing reveals the shadow is a mixture of Roanos aura and soul which ties its strength directly to his emotional state of mind. The more negativity Roanos feels the stronger the projection.**

 **Details: Raised by former Schatten-Initiate Magress Typhlon. At age twelve was subject to cyber-weapons augmentation procedure. Operation was successful but complications arose during procedure. Roanos was subject to several shocks to his brain during implantation process. Observational reports show increased aggression, diminished empathy, slight memory loss, as well as various minor inconsistencies.**

 **After recovery subject believes himself to Magress' son. Refers to his semblance as Shadow, the name of his deceased sibling killed during [CONFIDENTIAL]. Liquid metal nanites weapon system hasn't been rejected by his body's immune system. Refers to the weapon's system as Fenrir which takes the shape of a wolf.**

 **Additional Notes: Roanos is highly unstable. Has shown sociopathic as well as psychopathic behavior. Killed two sparing partners and when questioned why only replied with "I was stronger". Magress is the only one who has any semblance of control over Roanos. Shows signs of high intelligence masked behind ruthlessness. Brain degradation seems to flux.**

 **Recommendations: Roanos should be confined at all times unless being sent on a mission. Personality is unsuitable for anything other than eliminations.**

Selena read over the rest of the report for the fifth time in the last hour. She had heard of the incident regarding one of the Schatten going berserk in public while on a recon mission. Roanos was something of a loose cannon without his "father" around.

The door opened revealing a man dressed as a butler. He bowed deeply as he approached the woman. In his hands he held a tray with a complete tea set as well as an envelope.

"Gerrard, who is the letter from?" Selena asked as her attendant began making her tea.

"It is unsigned my lady and I would never open mail that wasn't mine." Gerrard answered as he added cream and sugar to the liquid.

Selena took the envelope and looked at it for any discerning features but found none. Opening the container, she removed the contents and began reading the letter inside. A small smile graced the woman's face as she curled her hair with her finger.

"Good news my lady?" Gerrard asked as he placed the tea on a saucer and handed it to Selena.

"Very good news Gerrard, thank you for the tea." Selena told her butler.

"I live only to serve you, my lady." Gerard spoke bowing once more before leaving the room.

Selena sipped her tea and savored its taste. Everything was going as she hoped. All she had to do was deal with the rabid dog of the Schatten without anyone tracing it back to her.

 _Bulkathos City_

Roanos paced back and forth on the side of the street as Fenrir his metallic wolf watched him intently. A girl, young and in her early teens walked up to Roanos with a blank expression on her face. She stopped right in front of the teenage boy and gave him a once over with her eyes. Roanos didn't know why she was looking at him the way she did but it caused him to feel both pissed and calm at the same time.

"Can I help you?" Roanos asked crossing his arms over his chest.

"Roanos, right? The Schatten-initiate?" The girl asked.

At this Roanos instantly began to observe the girl. She wore a pale pink skirt that covered her entire lower body. Her top was a matching pale pink shirt underneath a darker pink long-sleeved jacket. _Why the hell is she wearing so much pink?_ He thought angrily.

"Do you know our mission?" the girl asked as she moved her long dark hair out of her face.

"You have got to be shitting me, you're the partner I'm supposed to be meeting?" Roanos asked in disbelief.

"You're not what I pictured either from the stories I've heard." She stated, noting at how Roanos towered over her.

Roanos sneered at the girl trying to scare her but saw that she was unfazed by his tactic. Rather than waste time on her Roanos motioned for the girl to follow him. With Fenrir by his side and the girl half a step behind Roanos made his way deeper into the city.

"Are you Schatten or Licht?" Roanos asked as they passed buildings.

"I haven't decided. I was brought in by the Licht and have been with them for almost two and a half years." The girl replied.

Roanos noticed the way she walked. It looked as if she had practiced every movement repeatedly. Every step was perfect with no wasted motions in her gait.

"You're staring, its rather rude you know." The girl stated as they arrived at a large building.

Roanos ignored her comment as he pointed out a building next to the one they were in front of.

"My mission is to assassinate someone inside there. He helps stir up trouble in lesser known areas of the kingdom which raises the rate of Grimm attacks and allows the monarchy to raise taxes in those areas under the cover of protection from its troops." Roanos explained.

"If we know he's doing this why not just turn him over to the authorities?" the girl asked.

Roanos laughed and looked at her like she was an idiot.

"Spoken like a true Licht. You think anything would come of that? He's got powerful friends in the government. Even if we could get him arrested do you think they would let him live long enough to reveal anything?" Roanos asked.

"Your solution of killing him is only temporary. They'll just replace him with someone else and the cycle will start all over again." The girl argued causing Roanos to smirk.

"We already have somebody inside ready to fill the vacuum of power that'll be opened." He stated stopping the discussion in its track.

The girl opened her mouth to protest but closed it realizing she had nothing to come back with. Roanos was happy to have found a way to shut out her disapproval.

"What's the plan of attack?" she asked.

"I'm guessing they had you wear pink and dress in a girly manner to catch my target off guard." Roanos stated.

"I was told it would help, yes." She answered as they began walking again.

"This is good; he likes pretty young girls." Roanos said offhandedly

"So I'm what, bait?" the girl asked.

"More or less, yea you are. Since you are part of the Licht you can't really go around killing people, now can you?" Roanos asked reveling in the girl's discomfort.

Roanos had heard about the Licht from Magress and other Schatten members. Apparently his two friends Dax and Kyle had taken the Licht initiation while he was in recovery. The Licht felt as the Schatten did with the way the government had been corrupted but they didn't agree or approve of the Schatten methods.

The Licht had decided to try and stay within the confines of the laws established to fight the corruption around them. Knowing that this girl had been raised by Licht it was safe to assume that she wouldn't be able to kill anyone. It would go against their code.

"Come on, we'll mark him and then take him at night." Roanos told his reluctant partner.

The duo walked towards the building the target was located and sat do on one of the benches in its courtyard. Roanos heard the girl begin to hum an unfamiliar tune. He looked over at her and saw her body swaying in time with the melody. Roanos was about to tell her to be quiet when she began to sing and her voice actually gave him pause.

 **Wolves asleep amidst the trees,  
Bats all aswayin' in the breeze,  
But one soul lies anxious, wide awake,  
Fearin' all manner of ghouls, hags and wraiths**

 **For your dolly, polly sleep has flown,**  
 **Don't dare let her tremble alone.**

 **For the monsters**  
 **Hearts of cold,**  
 **Takes lives, young and old,**  
 **They comes, they'll go,**  
 **Leave naught behind,**  
 **But heartache and woe,**  
 **Deep, deep woe.**

 **Birds are silent for the night,**  
 **Cows turned in as daylight dies,**  
 **But one soul lies anxious wide awake,**  
 **Fearin' all manner of ghouls, hags and wraiths.**

 **My dear dolly, polly shut your eyes,**  
 **Lie still, lie silent, utter no cries.**

 **As the Hunters**  
 **Brave and bold,**  
 **Paid in coin of gold.**  
 **They'll stay and save you,**  
 **Act as brave do,**  
 **Protect your soul.**  
 **Save your soul.**

When she had finished her soft almost melancholy song Roanos found himself looking at the girl in a new light. Initially all he had seen was a hindrance to both himself and his mission. He had expected her to be as other Licht members and spout out nothing but disapproval towards the Schatten.

"That song, what is it?" Roanos asked as he stole a glance towards the building hoping to see his target.

"It's a lullaby my mother used to sing to me. It tells of the Grimm and how only the Huntsmen and Huntresses are our only defense against them." The girl answered.

"It sounded darker than that, and sad." Roanos stated seeing the man he was supposed to kill exit the building. He signaled for Fenrir to go mark the target while he and the girl continued to sit on the bench.

"The song has been passed down for years. The original version told not of the hunters coming to save or protect but simply the Grimm killing everyone in the world and leaving it barren." The girl explained.

"So the message it spreads now is that even when things look bad don't despair because there is someone to protect you?" Roanos asked.

The girl nodded but her eyes had turned hollow and she pulled her legs to her chest. Roanos knew a little about the psychology of people and knew that this song had just brought up a dark memory in the girls past.

"You say your mother used to sing it to you, what happened to her?" Roanos asked, noticing Fenrir's return.

"She died, she had gotten sick with a terminal illness and I had to watch her die." She answered a sudden edge in her voice.

"What about your father, was he around?" Roanos inquired as he inched closer to the girl.

"Yes, but he died a few years later on a Grimm hunt. After his funeral I left the rest of my family and began to travel the world on my own." She replied.

"That must have been tough traveling around as a preteen. Most people would've tried to force you to go home." Roanos stated.

"They did but I was only seven, not a preteen when I started my journey." She clarified causing Roanos to look at her with surprise.

 _She lost her family around the same age as me. She knows the lonesome pain of being loss._ The teenage boy thought as more of the girl's personality was revealed. He realized then that the walk she had wasn't practiced because she thought she was better than someone nut because she needed a mask to keep her inner demons at bay. _In her own way this girl is as broken and damaged as me._

"You marked the target already, we should leave so as not to attract to much attention to ourselves." The girls said as a group of people passed them and began to whisper.

Roanos nodded in agreement and began to walk away with the girl in tow. The two walked in silence, the girl because she had nothing to say and Roanos because he didn't know what he wanted to say. He was surprised that someone who had gone through a similar experience as him had chosen the Licht. He confused and irritated the boy as he looked to his side and saw the same practiced walk the girl had perfected.

They made it to a hotel that had already been paid for and reserved for them to use as a safe house. When they got to their room Roanos saw the girl immediately begin to slip out of her clothes.

"What are you doing?" he asked catching her wrist to stop her from removing her shirt.

"I thought this was going to happen during the day where the pink would throw him off guard but because you changed to night I'll need to change. These cloths, my hairstyle, my makeup, and various other small details will have to be reworked." She answered showing no fear at being grabbed almost as if she were daring Roanos to try something.

"Do it in the bathroom then." He shot out as he released her and went over to one of the beds.

Noticing the girls bag in the corner Roanos sighed and flopped down on the mattress in frustration. Roanos heard the bathroom door open and shut as the girl began to wash herself presumably. Deciding he had nothing better to do with his time Roanos closed his eyes and went to sleep, waiting for night to come.

"Roanos, wake up." The girl's voice spoke stirring the teenager.

Opening his eyes slowly Roanos that the girl had changed into a risqué outfit. She wore an open back sleeveless black dress that came down to her knees and hugged her body's curves in all the right places. She wore a small bracelet or bangle of some ort on her left wrist and had a small purse hanging from her shoulder.

Her high heels were practical and fashionable matching the color and style of her dress. She wore her hair down letting it rest comfortable on her shoulders while part of her face was covered by her bangs giving a sort of allure and mystery to the female. She looked almost unrecognizable from the early good-girl attire she had been dressed in.

"It's time to go Roanos." The girl stated and turned to leave.

Roanos noticed the sun had gone down and smiled to himself as he followed after the girl. Roanos had Fenrir track the target as he and the girl followed the metallic creature. Fenrir led the two teenagers to a seedier part of the city. Stopping across the street in front of a bar Fenrir began to growl softly.

"A bar, wasn't expecting that but I suppose we'll just have to wait until he gets out." Roanos stated as he leaned back against a building.

"That's inefficient, we'll take him down now." The girl said as she crossed the street.

"Stop, you idiot; you won't be able to get in.!" Roanos called out as he tried to stop her.

The girl just walked inside the establishment and for the next few minutes didn't exit. Roanos was at first confused that she wasn't thrown out immediately but soon he actually got worried that she had alerted the target to their presence which would make eliminating him a bit harder. Around the half hour mark of the girl having gone inside Roanos noticed that she was exiting with the man in tow.

 _She actually got him out of there. She's more impressive than I gave her credit for._ Roanos thought as he and Fenrir began to follow the target. He could see the man grabbing his partner's ass and giving it a squeeze. Suddenly the man grabbed the girl and covered her mouth before dragging her into an alley. Roanos immediately sprinted after them but when he turned the corner he saw the most unexpected scene before him.

The target lay dead, bleeding out from a sliced jugular. The girl stood over the body looking at it with a tilted head and inquisitive expression.

"What did you do? What the fuck happened?" Roanos asked walking over and grabbing the girl by her neck as he pushed her against the wall.

"He attacked me, tried to drug me and ended up dead because of it." She answered with the same inquisitive look in her eyes.

Roanos felt a familiarity in her expression. This was her first time killing a person. The small knife in her hand still dripped ruby-colored droplets from its blade as they stood in the alley.

"He was my kill, my mission." Roanos hissed.

"He was our mission, together and as for the kill you can take credit for it. I don't care. We need to report this though so if you aren't going to kill me then let me go." The female stated pronouncing the final three words almost as if each one was its own sentence.

Roanos released the girl and she merely looked at him before walking out the alley. _That broken look and realization that she killed someone. She's more like me than anyone I've met, is that why I didn't snap her neck for taking my kill?_ Roanos thought as he and Fenrir followed the girl.

"Wait up." Roanos called after the girl causing her to stop and turn.

"You know who I am. You called me out by name this afternoon, but I never caught your name. Who are you?" Roanos asked the hazel-eyed female.

The girl looked at Roanos and merely replied with a smirk,

"I was wondering when you'd ask me that. So allow me to introduce myself." She began with a slight curtsy.

"My name is…"

* * *

A/N: So Roanos origin ends with a fateful meeting. with one character done, there are still about eleven more to showcase before the second arc starts. leave your thoughts in the review box.


	4. Chapter 4: Crimson I

RWBY: Choices of Light and Dark

Chapter IV: Crimson – A Prodigy's Training

A/N: Compared to everyone one else writing Crimson's origin is rather bland but he's the most popular OC in the story so I can't exclude him from the prequel.

* * *

 _Forests outside Santi Village_

A lone hooded figure walked through the snow covered forest. The sound of crunching icicles beneath their feet filled their air as they walked between trees. The person was short, standing no higher than three and a half feet. The sound of growling filled the air causing the figure to stop and lift their head.

They could sense danger and knew the area was ill-suited for combat. Quickly looking around for a better path, the figure ran between some trees as the the growling sounds grew louder. Jumping a fallen tree trunk the figure was tackled in mid-air by a bipedal black creature.

The creature had no forelimbs and balanced itself with a comparatively large tail. Its hind-limbs were dual clawed and had inverted knees. The creature's head, which had stubby bone plating over the top, looked as though it was fully connected to the body with no neck separating the two. Its jaws were currently clamped upon the figure as they both crashed into the ground.

As the figure rolled around along the ground with the creature on them their hood was violently ripped off revealing the person to be a boy, no older than five or six. Shirt spiky white hair rested atop the child's head while piercing red eye's glared at the creature that had attack him. With his free arm the child reached within his cloak and pulled out a medium length blade, roughly the size of a short sword or long knife.

He stabbed the creature multiple times on its unarmored back and soft underbelly, inflicting massive amounts of damage in a short amount of time.. Releasing the child the creature cried out a death rattle before dissipating into a smokey black substance. The child stood up and threw off the remains of his tattered cloak.

"You panicked, Crimson." a female voice said from above the child.

The boy's facial expression never changed as he looked up and saw a woman with long straight white hair, like his own styled as a ponytail.

"It was not panic, Mother." Crimson said to the woman as dropped to the ground and walked over to her son.

The two were dressed similarly if almost identical. Crimson wore black custom singlet. It was a combination of a high collared short-sleeve t-shirt with shorts that came just above the child's knees. The outfit was made of breathable and flexible material. Both of Crimson's arms were wrapped in bandages from knuckles of his hands all the way to his elbows. He also wore insulated shoes to keep his feet warm in the frigid environment but were styled to look almost like slippers.

His mother's outfit was grey and instead of a one piece, she wore her outfit separated, with various small differences. Instead of shorts she wore a skirt that came to her mid-thigh. Her shirt was smaller than normal and exposed her midriff. She wore grey-silver arm warmers on each arm along with a pair of grey fingerless gloves with metal guards built into the backs.

She had four leg bands worn, two on each leg. One band near the ankle with the other beneath the knee. Between the bands her legs were wrapped in bandages. Her footwear consisted of black silver marital-artist shoes. Completing the outfit was her own cloak which she currently wore hood down.

"If it wasn't panic, then you were just being careless." the woman stated as she began to inspect the arm that had been bitten. The wound itself was superficial as Crimson's cloak had protected him from any real harm.

"It was hard to determine where the sound had come from." Crimson stated as he began to follow his mother through the trees.

"You should have waited and listened then. Instead you heard the sound of the creeper approaching and panicked by running off without a good sense of direction." the woman explained.

Crimson clenched his fist in anger and humiliation. He had been telling his parents that he was ready for a Grimm hunt for the past few months. They had finally relented and told him he could take the Beowulf and Creeper territory but to go no deeper into the forests than that. He didn't know that he was being followed and worse yet he had made a mistake in front of his mother.

The woman was a renown huntress. A testament to her skill being that she was still active in the field even when she was pregnant with Crimson. He had actually been born during a field mission, delivered with the help of the medic that had accompanied his mother at the time. She was everything Crimson aspired to be and after showing prodigal potential as a hunter at the age of three his mother had taken it upon herself to personally train him. Stopping a few feet away from a swath of undergrowth Crimson saw his mother signal for him to take point.

"Remember your training Crimson. Control the flow of combat and move with purpose." the woman whispered into her son's ear as he passed her.

Crimson felt his mother's presence leave and knew he was alone. His mother's teaching methods had always been a bit iffy to him. She never coddled him during training or outings. On more than one occasion when his life had been in danger she refused to come to his aid. The first time it happened the child had asked her why.

Her explanation for these actions were that he needed to learn independence and how to be strong alone. She had trained to work solo or with one person and that's what she was trying to pass down to him. Large teams didn't fit her fighting style or personality. There were only a handful of people she trusted enough to partner with and guard her life otherwise she was better off alone.

That constant fear that his mother might not save him during an engagement had actually proved supremely beneficial to Crimson as it forced him to hone his skills at an accelerated rate and to make sure his mind and body kept up with the demands he put on them. His mother wasn't heartless however as outside of combat and training she doted on him as any parent would their child.

Bringing his attention to the brush ahead Crimson drew his weapon, which had been strapped to his back and cautiously walked forward. His free hand rested on the handle of his second blade, shorter than the first and mostly designed for defensive maneuvers. Crimson cautiously looked through the bushes and saw a pack of Beowolves.

These were newborns, evidence by their lack of bone-like armor protrusions. Crimson counted almost five dozen of the Grimm within the large clearing of the grove. There were some grouped together while others hung around the fringe. Drawing his second blade Crimson mentally planned out the the efficient path to clearing the area, closing his eyes as he went into deep thought.

In his mind the child saw all the paths laid out before him. He saw the battles play out and compensated his calculations to include reinforcements arriving from the forests. Before he could finish his battle tactics however a group of the Grimm became alert and pointed themselves in his direction.

Crimson knew that he had been hidden perfectly and turned to see a couple of snow rabbits hopping quickly along the snow. Mentally taking note to kill as many of the snow rabbits as he could the next chance he got Crimson burst from his cover and charged the Grimm with a deadly calm aura about him. The Grimm growled as they saw the child run towards them and soon began to charge towards him.

As he came upon the first group Crimson cried out with a fierce bestial roar. He swung with both weapons as the first group of Grimm came within range, cleaving three of the beasts with the first attack. Keeping his momentum Crimson continued to run and spun his blades in a defensive maneuver that deflected the claws and cut the snouts of his attackers.

Twisting his body in motion with his attack the warrior child became whirlwind of death-dealing steel. He cut a path through the Grimm, always acting and keeping the flow of the battle at his pace as the monsters tried to react to his assault. Three Beowolves jumped at him as he spun and were rewarded with kicks to the face as they were thrown to the ground.

Stabbing his blades into more Grimm Crimson took a brief second to pause and gauge his surroundings. The large pack had begun closing in on him, cutting off many of his paths to retreat. Crimson's reprieve was cut sort as a Beowolf tackled into him and threw the child to the ground.

Crimson clenched is teeth in anger and pain as he and the creature rolled in the snow but he was able to kill it before coming to a stop. Standing up Crimson found his back was at the treeline as the Grim encircled him. he had two options before him, retreat or fight.

Crimson pressed a small button hidden in the hils of both weapons. The handle of each weapon telescoped in half of itself allowing Crimson to combine the two into one sword with the back edge being half the length of the main blade with a small space in between the locking weapons.

Holding his free hand forward Crimson motioned for the beasts to come at him before meeting their charge with a slicing motion. Multiple Grimm fell from the attack as Crimson cut open a path for himself. with one hand free the child was able to better balance himself while also attaching or holding off the Grimm with fluid motions.

He used his own momentum and applied the forward momentum from the lunges the Beowolves in order to throw the massive creatures into one another. With each twist and turn his sword flashed in the light reflected from the snow. The bodies of Grimm soon dropped and dissipated as crimson cut down a dozen more of the creatures all while making his way towards the center of the grove.

Crimson came to a stop as a Beowolf smacked him across the face and sent him crashing into the ground. Having been close enough to avoid its claws but not its arm Crimson received minimal damage from the attack but his flow and pace had been interrupted. Feeling a sharp pain across his back Crimson fought back the reaction of crying out as he struck with his sword and killed the Grimm that had attacked him.

he was hurt now was a deep gas from shoulder to waist. Standing to his feet shakily Crimson looked at the three dozen or so Beowolves that remained. He would be hard pressed against the remainder of them but knew that if he didn't fight then he would die. grabbing his sword in a two-handed grip crimson readied himself for the final assault.

Leaping forward he kicked out with his left foot and followed up with a sweeping slice across the chests of four of the monsters. They dropped, wounded but not dead as the rest of the pack began to swipe at the child. Crimson ducked a claw and rolled out of the way of multiple snapping jaws before decapitating one of the Grimm.

Finding that his rhythm was returning Crimson began a flow of complex slashes, chops, and cuts as he made his way from one Beowolf to the next. AS he cut down target after target Crimson began to notice his body becoming heavy and his vision beginning to blur. Blood loss from the attack on his back coupled with minor cuts and scrapes on his body and exhaustion from fighting were beginning to tax his stamina..

Falling to his knees Crimson heard the remaining twelve Beowolves howl loudly as they closed in for the kill. On his last legs the child stood and awkwardly held his weapon. he knew this was the end but was prepared for it. Crying out Crimson pushed his body to its final limits and cut through three of the creatures with one attack. splitting his sword back into its dual mode the warrior child cut through another three creatures bringing their number down by half with only two attacks.

One of the Beowolves bit into his side crushing his ribs between its massive powerful jaws. Crimson responded to the attack be slicing the monster's head off. with five Grimm left and two grievous wounds Crimson weighed his survival at less than fifteen percent. Four of the remaining wolves leapt at Crimson. Two died via bisection while the others were kicked away.

While Crimson still recovered from the landing of his aerial attack the fifth Beowolf attack. There was only one defense Crimson could mount from his position as he raised his blades and allowed the Beowolf to impale itself upon them. Unfortunately it got in its own attack as well with a sweeping claw across the lower half of Crimson's face.

Spitting out a small globule of blood Crimson pulled his weapons from the Grimm and looked around for the final two wolves that had been kicked away. They were gone but crimson heard the footsteps of something massive making its way towards him from the forest. Seconds later an alpha Beowolf jumped into the grove, flanked by the two adolescent Beowolves from before.

Chuckling as his vision faded completely and the Grimm were lost to his sight Crimson tightened his grip on his weapons as best he could. The hree Grimm rushed him, their paws crunching the snow as they closed in to finish off their blind and wounded prey. The eager adolescents struck out first, emboldened by the presence of their alpha. Crimson's body ducked their attacks at the last possible moment as he countered and sliced them both in half using their lunge momentum against them.

The alpha seeing them drop roared and continued its charge. Crimson felt its claw hit him and didn't try to avoid the second blow but instead ran up the length of the Grimm's arm. Combining the blades once more Crimson jumped into the air crying aloud before coming down and decapitating the great beast and crashing into the snow.

Blinded, exhausted, and bleeding out Crimson could only smile. He had survived, even if he was going to die now. He had taken on a large pack of grim and killed them all. he faintly heard the sound of crunching snow but unable to see the creature he could only surmise that a straggler had survived and was now coming to finish him off.

with his strength completely gone Crimson knew he was going to die and that he wouldn't be able to defend himself so he did the only thing he could. Gnashing his teeth the child put on his fiercest combat face that he could in defiance of the inevitable.

Instead of claws ripping at his body however Crimson felt the soft touch of human hands. Instead of teeth ripping at his throat, the gentle kiss of lips was placed on his brow.

"Mother?" Crimson croaked weakly as he tried to force his body to move.

"Shhh, be still my son." Crimson heard his mother voice speak.

"You are hurt. I will do what I can for you but you must live untill i can get you back to the medic." she told her know unconscious son as she began to treat him.

She had patched up his wounds as best as she could and knew that if he didnt get proper treatment he could die. Looking at the now cleared grove and what little remained of the grim the Woman placed Crimson on her and started to head back to their home. Tears fell from her eyes, from sadness and pain or pride and happiness was anyone's guess but from the way she held her son it was clear that she was happy he had survived.

* * *

A/N: There it is, Crimson's origin or at least the first part. I feel like he has one or two more chapters i can do before the next character's story is told. Do you agree, drop a review and let me know your thoughts


	5. Chapter 5: Crimson II

RWBY: Choices of Light and Dark

Chapter V: Crimson – A Prodigy's Dilemma

A/N: Taking down beasts since the age of six, that's what makes Crimson so OP.

* * *

 _Santi Village_

A young white haired boy and a larger auburn haired boy circled one another. Their eyes were sharp and focused as each tried to find a weakness in his opponent. The large boy struck out first with a small dagger and tried to cut his opponent. The smaller child ducked and weaved out of the way avoiding the attack before countering. Armed with the twin wooden kali sticks in his hands the boy struck out at his target.

First he flipped forward and smashed both sticks overhead onto the large boy's shoulders. As his target cried out in pain the white-haired child continued his attack by slamming the right stick into his opponent's stomach. He continued the string by striking out hard with the left stick, so hard that he had excess momentum that made him spin.

Rather than trying to correct himself the fighter moved with the motion and swung both sticks across the face and chest of the large boy before bringing them back across in the opposite direction in quick succession. From there he jumped and kicked his opponent in the chest before slamming the sticks onto the boys shoulders. Te large auburn haired boy crumpled from the impact and refused to get up.

"Crimson Carmine, victor." a man dressed in a white gi said raising his left hand.

There was cheering as crimson looked around at the spectators. The nine-year old Crimson was currently competing in annual martial arts tournament for his village. As the two year reigning champ for the junior division consisting of children seven to twelve, Crimson was obligated to defend his title against all challengers. The entire prospect however was insane to the child.

People he had already beaten were challenging him knowing they couldn't win. As he continued to scan the crowd Crimson's eyes rested on a man wearing an eye patch who had dark silver-white spiky hair. The man was Rojo Carmine, Crimson's father and right now his expression was one of indifference. He, like Crimson already knew what the outcome would be.

Scanning the crowd for his mother, Crimson noticed she was absent and instead walked off the arena as the next contenders were called to fight. Walking from the fighting area into a nearby hall Crimson sighed and started to head towards the exit when the air filled with a familiar presence.

"You should have ended the fight in less moves Crimson. Was your opponent to tough for you?" Rojo Carmine's deep baritone voice spoke as the man materialized in front of his son.

"No Father, I was just bored. I thought prolonging the fight might give me some enjoyment." Crimson answered looking into his father dark-burgundy colored eyes.

Everyone on Crimson's father's side of the family had the unique genetic trait of red-hued eyes. It was proof of the heritage of the Carmine family. His mother, whose eyes were soft blue had been considered unfit to marry into the family. They believed she would dilute the blood too much and that any child she had would not bear the trademark of the Carmines. When she proved herself stronger than many of the other candidates to marry Rojo and Rojo himself they all had a change of heart.

"You are not some common brawler Crimson. You are part of the elite, a Carmine. Our family has been hunting and eradicating Grimm for generations. The only family known to have been doing it at our level would be the Oregenera" Rojo stated as he began to walk. Crimson knew he had to follow and began to walk after the older man.

"If you did not wish to see me fight why do you insist I defend my title?" Crimson asked.

"When you won the title two years ago, you had entered the tournament against my wishes. Now that you have it you must hold it until such time you are no longer eligible to defend it. Anything less would bring shame to the Carmines." Rojo answered.

"Father, I am not the only carmine in this tournament. Scarlett, Ruby, and Cornell are all competing as well. It can't shame the family if one of them holds the title. We are all Carmines." Crimson protested.

Rojo chuckled as he and his son exited the building and out into the crisp frozen air of their village. Santi Village was located in the far north of Valethornia near its ice capped mountains. Its villagers trained in seclusion. Their worth to the Kingdom were their warriors. The entire village produced huntsman and huntresses with almost unparalleled skill. The greatest among them being the Carmine family.

"You speak truly Crimson, but for me and your uncles it is personal pride in our children that make us push you. Your cousins should be the only ones giving you trouble here." Rojo explained.

"This combat is a waste of time. I've already proven myself, what more do people want?" Crimson asked sitting down on a bench.

Rojo sat next to his son and looked up at the sky. It was the afternoon and the mountain sun reflected off the snow in an almost dreamlike manor.

"You will be a soldier Crimson. Everything you do, you must do for the mission. What we want from you is to be the best. You are my son and I have trained you the way my father taught me." Rojo replied.

"Father, ours is the way of stealth. We eliminate Grimm with precision and speed. Always acting, never reacting and controlling all hunts as we want them to be." Crimson stated turning to look up at his father.

"Yes Crimson, this is true but you must be proficient in other areas as well. It shows in your martial training. You know the movements but you don't make them your own. For now that is acceptable but if you rely on it to much you will become predictable." Rojo spoke.

"I don't understand, If my speed is better than someones than they cant avoid my blows. My form and strikes are perfect so how can they be predicted?" Crimson inquired.

Rojo smiled, more to himself than to his son. The conversation had been turned successfully from what could have been conflicting teachings from what Crimson learned from his mother and what he learned from his father to a learning conversation. He had Crimson curious on how to better himself and that had been his goal all along.

"As you are now Crimson, you are like stone. Strong and powerful, but rigid and unwavering. You must break out of your stone-self and open your mind." Rojo stated

"Open my mind?" Crimson questioned but in a way that brought out his childlike curiosity.

"Yes transform from stone. Become formless, shapeless, like water." Rojo continued to explain.

"Father but water is weak. it splashes on impact and can only move where ever someone directs its." Crimson argued.

Rojo laughed and looked over to his son who stared back at him with wise eyes.

"Crimson, water is flexible and you are wrong about it being weak. Water tears down rock and earth. It adapts to its environment. If you put water into a cup it will become the cup. If you put it into a teapot then it will become the teapot. Like water you must adapt your skills to suit your environment. Like water you must be able to flow from one form to another. Like water you must be able to creep, silent and deadly. Like water you must be able to crash, striking at the most opportune moment available. Be water my son, be water." Rojo told the child as they heard the announcement for the semi-finalist to appear at the arena.

Taking one last look at his father Crimson stood up and exhaled softly before bowing slightly to Rojo and running back in the direction of the tournament. Rojo sat on the bench and began to look once more at the sky. Being a father had always been a challenged. Balancing caring with discipline was one of the most difficult things for him to do. Rojo cared for his son but he also knew what was expected of Crimson as well as himself from the family and so he could only give Crimson a certain amount of affection.

"You don't think he is a bit young to be learning this method of fighting?" Rojo heard a soft female voice say before arms wrapped around him from behind.

"Aquamarie, my love how I've missed you so." Rojo stated as the face of his wife appeared, staring down at him.

"And I, you my love." the white-haired blue-eyed woman replied before kissing Rojo's lips.

 _Fighting Arena_

"First semi-final match, Crimson Carmine versus Scarlet Carmine." the announcer declared.

Crimson looked at his long haired female cousin as she tested out the bo staff she would be using for the fight. He had switched out from the kali sticks to stronger bokken, wooden swords. Twirling the two weapons Crimson tested the balance of them before switching out for a different pair. Switching out once more Crimson found a pair that felt more natural in his hands and nodded before getting into the ring.

Scarlet entered after Crimson and smiled at her cousin with a playful glint in her eyes. She twirled her staff and held it off to her side with one hand in front of her open palm. Crimson go into his stance and locked eyes with Scarlet as he mentally prepared himself. _Be water my son, be water._ Rojo's words echoed in Crimson's mind and he felt his body relax. He didn't realize how tense he had been and exhaled with a small smile.

"Fight!"

* * *

A/N: Yes short chapter but its planned. Here's my response to my anon-crowd

Dark Lord: I didn't want much dialogue for the way Crimson got presented. I wanted the actions of his mother to speak for how their relationship is. It is explained why he is who he is by the way he was trained but I get what you're saying. Glad you enjoyed Roanos (not Roane) intro. I do plan on exploring everyone's semblance and the significance behind their activation in their prequels. I don't know how AFD feels about the chapter nor do i know if they'll post their thoughts on the matter.

Anubis: I've already posted the first chapter for the second arc. It's a completely separate story, Journey of Light and Dark. That and my Zoids story will be my main focus while all my other LaD RWBY-verse stories will be kind of like filler. I cant really do much with Crimson because he's a prodigy so i have to give him some kind of conflict while still keeping true to his prodigious nature.

Ice Queen: If by next release you mean the second arc, I've already posted it as RWBY: Journey of Light and Dark. I don't do any stories about Crimson but his prequel segment has two more chapters.


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